“We don’t have to be handy with a camera to appreciate the message, the beauty and the wonder of these photographs.”

Photograph: William Goodwin

Winner in the nature category: Shrimp in Sponge. This peppermint shrimp is spending the day in a branching vase sponge about 75ft deep in Bonaire’s Margate Bay. Lighting was achieved with a HID torch shining on the outside of the sponge. The photographer, working upside down, had to approach as close as possible without touching or disturbing the shrimp or the sponge.

Photograph: Debra Jansen

Winner in the people category: The Bus Stop. A 97-year-old woman waits for the bus stop in her Sunday best in Chamblee, Georgia.

Photograph: Hugo Machado, Portugal

Winner in the places category: Supersize Hat. Licancabur volcano is on the border between Chile and Bolivia.

Photograph: Stefano Amirante

Honorable mention in nature category: Untitled. A leopard cub was lounging in a tree in Mala game reserve in South Africa when a male adult attacked. The cub leaped to another tree but fell to the ground. Slightly injured with a bite from the adult he still managed to escape.

Honorable mention in places category: Fireflies. Blaser was spending the Fourth of July in the Nebraska farmhouse where she grew up and found there were more fireflies than she had ever seen. She went to the dirt road behind the house and shot this picture using a long exposure, just after sunset.

Photograph: Nicola Cocco, Italy

Honorable mention in places category: Railway House in Winter Frost. The photographer drove to the countryside in the Veneto region when it began to snow, found this abandoned train station at Feltre and was fascinated by its melancholic feel.

Photograph: Arie Yudhistira, Indonesia

Honorable mention in the people category: Facing the Almighty.

Photograph: Fausto Podavini, Italy

Honorable mention in the people category: Untitled. The picture was shot at San Juan de los Remedios, Cuba during the Las Parrandas celebration. Here the children light the fireworks and run away.

This photo may not have won but … it’s a winner in my heart.

Photo and Caption: Gemma Collier, New Zealand

Honorable mention: My grandfather was born and raised on our New Zealand farm. He and my grandmother were married nearly 60 years. Preparing for a photo in the barley, my grandmother lovingly reached up to adjust his hat. This was his last harvest.

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About Maxi

Hi … I'm Maxi, a retiree with an addiction. I have quit: raising kids, cleaning house, cooking, doing laundry—there is no end the list—everything is done on "have to." The addiction? Writing to my last breath.
blessings ~ maxi